Azernews.Az

By Narmina Mammadova

The number of Pakistani tourists visiting Azerbaijan has increased by more than eight times over the past two years, the Pakistani Embassy in Azerbaijan said in a message on October 8.

Azerbaijan took part at the international travel and tourism exhibition "Pakistan Travel Mart" that was held in Karachi (Pakistan), the embassy noted.

Travel and insurance companies, hotels, airlines of Pakistan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia and other countries were presented at the exhibition in the Karachi Expo Center.

Azerbaijan's delegation included 30 people, being represented by the Azerbaijan Tourism Association (AZTA) and representatives of 18 different travel companies and hotels for the first time. The stands of Azerbaijan aroused great interest among visitors and exhibitors.

During the exhibition, conferences on various topics and an international forum were organized.

Friendly and warm relations between two nations are developing every day and these relations, which are improving in all areas, are more than a strategic partnership. On the instructions of the President of Azerbaijan, visa procedures were simplified for Pakistani citizens, and now the visa can be obtained via the Internet.

Earlier, Ambassador of Pakistan to Azerbaijan Saeed Khan Mohmand told Trend that a private airline from Pakistan has expressed an interest in starting direct flights to Baku, and currently negotiates with Azerbaijani side on terms and conditions of such cooperation.

Azerbaijan and Pakistan enjoy great potential in tourism cooperation.

"We have already seen a 400 percent increase in tourist turnover in last 2 years. We hope this fact will give an impetus to opening direct flights between our countries soon," said the envoy.

In 2017, the number of Pakistani citizens, visiting Azerbaijan was between 20,000 – 25,000 people, and this number is expected to increase.

Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Pakistan amounted to $5.2 million. Around $402,470 of this amount accounted for export of Azerbaijan’s products to Pakistan, and $4.8 million accounted for import of Pakistani products to Azerbaijan.

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